Although Syracuse University, a candidate for Atlantic Coast Conference expansion along with Boston College and Miami, is not mentioned in the lawsuit filed last week by the five other Big East conference members it remains unclear if it will affect SU’s possible exit.

‘It is clear the litigation by the Big East schools and the ACC is a means of trying to gain leverage to either make Miami and BC think twice or the ACC presidents think twice,’ Morrow said. ‘It does seem to be some sort of last ditch effort.’

It may be working. According to an E-mail obtained by The Associated Press, North Carolina, Duke and Virginia expressed doubts about expansion. Three no votes, under ACC expansion rules, would at least temporarily sink the proposal.

‘There is always the possibility of litigation,’ SU spokesperson Kevin Morrow said. ‘It is not anything we are overly concerned about because nothing has been directed toward SU.’

The five plaintiffs – West Virginia, Pittsburgh, Connecticut, Rutgers and Virginia Tech – chose to sue Miami and BC because, according to the complaint, those universities ‘made repeated public and private statements and commitments to the other members of the Big East that it intended to remain a member of the Big East and that it had no intention of leaving to join any other conference.’

Syracuse never made official commitment to other members of the Big East conference, so it will not being sued.

‘(The decision to leave Syracuse out) reflected the information currently in hand about how all of this unfolded and the roles that universities did or did not play,’ Pittsburgh Chancellor Mark Nordenberg said.

The five football-playing schools sued because of the revenues they would lose should Miami, BC and Syracuse leave the Big East in tatters. Connecticut, Virginia Tech and Pittsburgh built or renovated football stadiums under the impression they would be playing in a strong Big East.

The Big East conference has no involvement in the suit.

Despite the suit, the ACC and Commissioner John Swofford plan to continue with their expansion plans.

‘We are disappointed with the actions taken, particularly when one of the plaintiffs initiated a visit to our office last month and expressed a desire to join the Atlantic Coast Conference,’ Swofford wrote on the conference’s Web site. ‘Regardless, the ACC and its nine member institutions will continue to be proactive in the evaluation of opportunities that best serve the interests of the league, our member institutions, and our student-athletes.’

The vote to extend formal invitations will likely come within the next few weeks when the chancellors and presidents of the nine ACC schools meet in a conference call that has been delayed since Monday. After the presidents vote, representatives from the three candidates for expansion will join the call.

The final decision for Syracuse to join the ACC or remain in the Big East will be made by SU Chancellor Kenneth A. Shaw.

‘This decision is not going to be made by me,’ SU director of athletics Jake Crouthamel said. ‘It will be made by the Chancellor. My guess is he will ask me what I think. That’s only a guess but I think he will ask me what I think. He will make the decision and he has not told me what the decision is going to be.’

After Swofford and other representatives from the ACC visited Syracuse last week, that decision will likely be to be a jump to the ACC. Common belief is that the ACC would not make official visits unless it was sure the school would join.

‘This is a two-way street, as expansion always is,’ Swofford wrote. ‘There had to be a certain level of interest by both parties, both the ACC as well as Miami, Boston College and Syracuse to reach the point of these visits taking place.’

After meeting with ACC representatives at Syracuse, Crouthamel was impressed by the conference’s foresight.

‘It’s more a matter of having, now, a clear awareness of where the ACC wants to position itself for the future and I can’t help but applaud that,’ Crouthamel said after the visit. ‘Maybe it could be said that we in the Big East should have been more proactive in adding four teams. The ACC being proactive, giving the current marketplace and the direction the marketplace seems to be headed nationally, I applaud them for their decision.’

Published on June 11, 2003 at 12:00 pm